The man with six swords strapped to his belt watched Enkrid, who smiled throughout the entire fight, and inwardly nodded his head.
'His temperament is exceptional.'
That was how he looked, charging in while laughing. It was a rare sight—even among Odinkar and the other Zaun children, few showed such signs of enjoying the family head's pressure to this degree.
Rare, unusual, and eye-catching, but there were others in Zaun of similar caliber, so he thought, "Is this all there is to it?" But then...
"One more round?"
The words Enkrid spat out immediately after his defeat were different. The emotion contained in those words pierced straight through his heart.
The owner of the six swords didn't know exactly who his opponent was, but he hoped the family head would grant that man's request.
Look at that desperation contained in those blue eyes amid the black hair.
'Family head, isn't this what you've always emphasized?'
Hadn't he said it just a moment ago too?
Present desperation is always one step behind, and only previously accumulated effort can respond to current desperation.
Yet this black-haired man poured out desperate emotions even now, while receiving the word "excellent."
I want to swing my sword more. This isn't the end yet. Please spar with me a little longer.
He cried out, pouring out his emotions.
'Acknowledging defeat is excellent, and enjoying swordsmanship is excellent, but...'
Nothing is as excellent as possessing desperation.
It was one of the Zaun family's teachings. It was also the family head's creed.
A genius who has lost desperation cannot be called a genius, which is why they had sent Ragna away. But the man who came with him showed something that stirred the heart. Very hotly.
"...A rare temperament."
The Zaun family values temperament. These were the words of the blond middle-aged man beside him.
The man with six swords didn't even turn his head as he criticized.
"Just rare? It's a precious temperament. Develop your eye for judgment, Heskal."
His long-held intuition from a lifetime of wielding swords saw that man's specialness. Perhaps it was because he specialized in the concept of waves, but that was what he felt now.
The blond middle-aged man didn't seem to think it was quite to that extent. Though his eyes showed surprise, his attitude was relatively calm.
"As always, hearing about discernment from you is unpleasant."
The blond middle-aged man called Heskal retorted, but the man with six swords didn't respond further.
Was such trivial banter important right now? Not at all.
Besides these two, there were several other observers. One of them was Anne, who had also felt her heart pierced by Enkrid's desperation, found her gaze captured, and came to hope that the man who had killed her master would rise again.
And naturally, she cast her gaze toward the person who would answer Enkrid's question.
She thought she saw thin black smoke dispersing from the family head's lips. It was so brief it could be half dismissed as an illusion, and it scattered quickly.
Also, she had been so shocked she'd forgotten, but there was also a smell that only an alchemist who had long dealt with drugs and herbs could detect.
Anne broke free from the aftereffects of the emotion Enkrid had conveyed. The alchemist's instincts combined with what she hoped for awakened her mind.
'Ah.'
Anne realized something and was about to speak, but the family head's wife was faster.
"I'll take over now."
She stepped forward without even receiving the family head's permission, but no one objected.
Everyone knew that in terms of skill alone, Alexandra was no less than the family head.
Even Enkrid, who knelt on one knee right in front of them with blazing eyes, felt this through the atmosphere and presence.
Some here knew and some didn't, but Alexandra had been the swordsmanship instructor for the Empire recruitment officer called Schmidt.
Schmidt's sword focused on speed. That was natural. Even before she took the Zaun surname, her sword was fast.
When the fame of the Knight of Gale spread that he traversed the continent on his own two feet, Alexandra had a similar nickname too.
Blitzklingen, which in continental language meant Lightning Blade.
Two swords with blades slightly longer than short swords were her signature weapons. Even on this particularly dark day, a cold light seemed to linger around her blade edges.
'The family head is heavy.'
His wife is fast.
Perhaps it was natural that Ragna, who had seen his father's and mother's swords since childhood, wielded both heavy and fast swords.
After finishing her words and seeming to give him time to catch his breath, suddenly one of Alexandra's twin swords became a dot, stabbing toward Enkrid's forehead.
Zhiiiiing—
A sound like lightning being drawn followed behind the sword that had become a dot. Enkrid, concentrating with utmost focus, twisted his head to the side.
Pik!
His cheek was cut by the blade, and a droplet of blood flew into the air. Before that single droplet could fall to the ground, at least fifteen or more sword strikes were exchanged.
Tatatatatata-tang!
Enkrid had somehow risen from the ground and stood with his sword held diagonally forward, his body positioned as if hiding behind his blade.
Alexandra had retreated four and a half steps back and stood holding the swords in both hands.
Rumble rumble rumble.
Far above in the sky, dark clouds gathered and thunder rumbled. It looked like rain might pour down.
Drip.
The cheek must have been cut quite deeply, as blood flowing down Enkrid's cheek had formed a drop at his chin.
"I'll finish this before it rains."
Alexandra said.
"Is that so?"
Enkrid answered, breathing heavily with excitement. How had he blocked that sword strike just now? He asked himself and sought an answer. No answer came.
Should he say he was lucky?
Alexandra opened her mouth again as if giving Enkrid time to catch his breath.
"Unusual weather. Storms do roll in around this time, but this seems like a scale I haven't seen before. I don't know which god is playing tricks, but it won't be the sword god's doing. The sword god wouldn't be interested in anything other than sword strikes."
"Is that so?"
The corners of Alexandra's mouth rose.
"Look at this bastard? He's not listening to me?"
No one in this world is perfect. Ragna knew his mother's weakness. She was generally gentle, but the moment someone crossed a certain line, honorifics disappeared from her speech. It was a danger signal.
'What is this?'
Enkrid focused on something that seemed within his grasp yet elusive.
He had seen a mirage in the desert, and if he concentrated, it seemed like he might be able to grasp it somehow. So without realizing it, he let his desperation show.
The earnestness he usually kept deep in his heart was now exposed on the surface. Beyond elation, desire to have this right now was boiling up.
He wanted to swing his sword fiercely. He didn't know the method. He didn't know the path. He just wanted to swing his sword.
He mixed in one more wish.
'For as long as possible.'
He wanted to swing his sword again and again. While maintaining this current state.
How should he go about that?
'Endure.'
Will wouldn't be lacking. First, he put Tri-Iron forward and hid his body behind it.
Putting his right foot forward, he drew a line upward based on the big toe of his extended foot, blocking that line with his sword. That way, he put his sword between his opponent and himself. Making only his sword visible in his opponent's sight.
'What's next?'
From the recent clash, he recognized that his opponent's swordsmanship had points similar to Won-Killer's.
It alternated between instinct and calculation, but what was contained within was rationality. What if he twisted that a little?
He had done it directly against the demon called Won-Killer, trying to break through his own calculations as he drew near.
'Meaningless movements won't do. The goal is disruption.'
Wave-Blocking Sword was in effect. Tactical thinking told him what he needed to do now.
Enkrid let his left hand hang down and moved it near Penna. He wouldn't draw it. No, he wouldn't even grasp it.
But this action alone would introduce an error in his opponent's calculations...
Shik!
In an instant, Enkrid saw two crescents falling toward him. Literally, suddenly two swords fell in crescent shapes.
He thrust Tri-Iron diagonally upward while pushing his left foot back and tensing all his muscles.
Suddenly everything slowed down. It was sword work that couldn't be blocked otherwise.
The moons were falling. A sword wielded incorrectly can harm oneself.
If he was pushed back by the crescent cuts, he might perform the feat of cutting his own body with his own blade.
Tang! Kaaaang!
Two moons struck Tri-Iron. Enkrid judged it was too late to deflect with his sword, so he used Balaf-style martial arts to redirect the force from his body.
Thud thud.
Thanks to that, both his feet slid left and right.
Alexandra, who had delivered what looked like two crescents, once again created distance.
"Are you joking? I'm faster than you, and you try such tricks? What kind of moron does something like that?"
Your daughter.
Enkrid swallowed the provocation. It wasn't the time for that. Alexandra was definitely going easy on him.
This was a body that had just been beaten by the family head. No matter how he looked at it, it was hard to say he was in peak condition.
Did she know that and was holding back?
Actually, that wasn't it. Ragna knew his mother's bad habit had emerged.
A cornered mouse bites a cat. But what if that opponent is a tiger?
Alexandra Zaun enjoyed cornering her opponents during sparring matches.
The corners of her mouth twisted into a smirk. It was a look of pure enjoyment.
"Hey, you'll die if you keep that up."
Enkrid felt those words acutely. The killing intent she was showing now was no joke.
The intimidation taking physical form was the same on this side too.
If earlier was a greatsword, the intimidation she was showing now was an arrowhead that had approached right before his eyes with the bowstring fully drawn.
If the fingers holding the string were released, an arrow just a span away would fly forth.
The dizzying sensation stimulated his mind and heated his brain. His heart stirred and Will surged through his entire body. His head repeated thoughts and accelerated his thinking.
'To repeatedly perform actions that disrupt calculations, I must expose that many of my own openings.'
Therefore, it was suicidal in front of someone with hands that fast.
'What a fucking stupid thing to do.'
Acknowledged.
Enkrid finished his brief review. It was instantaneous. Alexandra's foot struck the ground again. Thump!
The moment she stepped on the dirt ground and leaped, her body approached so fast it seemed to blur.
'React.'
Enkrid commanded his body.
The initial dot-like thrust followed by high-speed consecutive attacks, then the sword work from just before.
He hadn't thought and deflected it. His body had moved on its own.
Clang!
Alexandra's sword striking diagonally downward was deflected by Enkrid's Tri-Iron, but she held two swords in her hands.
The sword in her opposite hand made a stabbing sound as it pierced above Enkrid's right thigh.
It was precisely the gap in the joint area that his armor couldn't protect.
Enkrid used the force from deflecting the sword to spin his body half a turn. Thanks to that, Alexandra's extended sword cut above his thigh, but he avoided a fatal wound.
Blood flowed a little over his torn clothing, but it was just a scratch.
"You swing a sword with your whole body, you idiot! Build your abs first, make them harder."
When was it? It was when he was a mercenary, guide, bodyguard, or a noblewoman's ornament, earning and spending kronas freely.
One of the instructors had said this while teaching the basics of swordsmanship.
"You don't swing with just your arms. Use your whole body."
So he had trained his body that way. Every single day without fail, like a madman.
Later, Audin taught him how to make muscles thicker, tougher, and more flexible.
So he did that. He rolled his body following him.
'My body responds sufficiently.'
He had also learned a method where whatever path he chose wouldn't be wrong. It was something Ragna had taught him. So there was no hesitation.
Instinct and intuition raised their heads.
Alexandra's sword flew from beyond the range of perception and calculation. Thanks to that, his senses opened the floodgates first and reacted.
Cold wind brushed past his ears. All his senses stood on end, trying to read his opponent's movements down to each hair.
Alexandra's body had taken on a faint glow, and something similar appeared on her swords too.
It was a motion of hiding her left hand behind her and striking diagonally downward with only the sword in her right hand.
'React.'
Enkrid spoke to his body once more.
Something hazy was grasped in his hands and took form.
His senses reacted first, performing actions before recognition. In that process, Will was naturally used.
It was a motion he had performed hundreds or thousands of times, yet it felt as if someone had woven threads to move his body in his place.
BOOM!
A thunderous sound rang out and Enkrid became a puppet with cut strings, flying backward once again. However, this time he didn't roll on the ground. Thunk—someone caught his back midway and stopped his body.
Thanks to that, instead of rolling unsightly, Enkrid sat diagonally on the ground. He was kneeling on one knee just like before.
Amusingly, it ended in the same position as his spar with the family head.
"What did you just do?"
It was Ragna. His eyes clearly showed surprise. It was a rare sight.
"I don't know."
Enkrid answered.
"Alex, were you planning to kill someone during sparring?"
Someone called Enkrid's sparring opponent. It was the person with six swords.
"Ah, I really almost killed him. Are you okay?"
Alexandra, who seemed to have calmed down and returned to her original state, asked.
"Ah, but you seem fine. You blocked it well, didn't you?"
She immediately added with a smile.
Enkrid nodded and said.
"Yes, I blocked it. And it was fun too."
It was a statement filled with sincerity.
Ragna looked at Enkrid and recalled the scene he had just witnessed.
It was hard to believe.
'He imbued his sword with Will.'
Briefly, but that's how it looked.
Will is an intangible force. Ragna had inwardly defined the next stage to advance to as materializing intangible force into tangible form.
To put it in words, it would be manifestation.
He had actually shown it when breaking through Enkrid's Wave-Blocking technique.
To add to this, he had taken the foundation of that technique from his father's sword.
He had grasped the concept of manifestation based on his father's intimidation. That's why it was a greatsword.
Now he needed to compress that and emit Will of a different quality.
'The captain did it just now.'
In an instant, Enkrid, who had received his mother's sword, had walked ahead on the path he was meant to take.
"Let's try again."
"Huh? Hmm, I don't think it'll work."
At Ragna's words, Enkrid shook his head. As he said this.
"It's not something that happens every day."
Talent is ruthless. For some, a single stroke of luck allows them to manifest it quite well, but for others, similar luck must visit dozens of times.
Despite facing such ruthlessness.
"It's fun."
Someone who could smile like that would be truly rare. Really truly rare.
This was while Ragna briefly supported his captain's back with his palm.
"Since when?"
Anne, who had been detached from all these events like an outsider, approached the family head closely and asked.
The family head gazed at Anne quietly.
Anne's expression represented her seriousness.
"Tell me."
Moreover, she boldly spoke to the family head as if giving an order, but for Anne this was natural.
No matter who the opponent was, if that person was a patient with a serious illness and death was predetermined, Anne would do anything to save them. That was the creed of one who claimed to be a healer.
"Let's talk inside."
The family head opened his mouth and Alexandra gestured for the surroundings to disperse.
"If you've finished watching, everyone go on. If you saw something good, train diligently."